Ever done something clever that saved you a repair or saved a bunch of time on a repair? Please post your clevers.
This one time I was bombing down a side street at about 2am and some dog jumped out in front of my car. Rather than jump the curb and fuck up my wheel/hub/axle/etc., I just went straight and ran it over. Saved me a shitton in repairs, just needed a little Simple Green cleaner to get the bumper back to normal.
jb weld, duct tape, and zip ties
everything
>>14040936
Always replace parts that are old as fuck that are under parts that you have to replace anyways.
>car starts to bog down in 3rd
>sounds like a rotary from sputtering
>leave it alone for 3 days
>problem solved
>battery gets drained by faulty wiring somewhere
>remove everything from terminal and reconnect when I need it
>problem solved
>wheel bent and has a slow leak
>pump up the tires before every drive
>problem corrected
>>14040946
This. I will just run over cats and dogs fuck them.
Now before you guys go and call peta on me. The faggots will usually come out of no were. Usually sit there dumb ass down on the middle of the fucking lane.
So what do? Run there ass over thats whst.
>>14040936
>Stitched up a cracked valence, under body plastics and fender liner junction with zip ties.
It looks like ass but it's completely functional.
>>14040981
>were
>there
>there
>>14040981
As fucked up as this is i would agree.
If i see them in the road and i know i can avoid hitting it safely i'll curve around it.
However if a little animal jumps in front of my car i'm not gonna swerve to avoid it i'll just ruin its ass.
>>14040936
>06 ranger
>autotragic
>More so because it's a Mazda tranny
>put off changing granny fluid for 2 years it looked and smelled ok just old
>finally change it
>tranny starts slipping gears shifting hard won't shift and throwing tranny codes
>ohfugg.jepg
>drive the piss out of it the next 2 weeks
Problem solved
>>14040936
>Changing struts/springs in my wife's honda element (same wife).
>when I was banging the piece of the strut the tie rod bolts to trying to break the tie rod loose, I accidently smacked the end of the tie rod
>thread at the end got straight buggered, no tap and die kit, and fuck me if I'm gonna go buy one right now
>try to impact it on, but the tie rod just spins
>also tie rod is facing down, forgot to mention
>by putting a wrench under the strut and using it as a lever to push the tie rod down while simultaneously impacting it, I'm able to get it about 3/4 on, then that method stops working
>grab scissor jack, and place it so that it's putting crazy pressure on top of the tie rod
>impact that sum bitch the rest of the way
>fuck you tie rod, I win
>>14041032
>local anon jailed for sabotaging his car and driving it and the wheel happens to break loose and hits a man of color who was a gud boo, bought to get his life on track , he dindu nuffin
>>14041032
Should of took some pics. To much work i would buy a new one.
Especially since you would need to torque them down. To much pressure you can tear the boot or ruin it.
But hey its fixed on a budget am i right.
>>14041052
Yeah, that thing isn't coming off until an impact tells it to.
>>14040936
Ahhh...i buy online and i go to junkyards that is how I save money.
One time, my check engine light came on. I saved a ton of money on repairs by just putting some electrical tape over it.
>>14041093
>then my check engine light burned out
>and I had to get the entire dash assembly replaced for $1700
>boy was I wrong
>>14041101
No way in hell would i pay for that.
>>14040936
I got an oil change at Midas because I won a free oil change as a door prize somewhere. They told me that my axle seal was leaking, and they could fix it for $300. Basically $100 part plus labor. 'It's just one of those parts, it's expensive.
I checked it when I got home, and by god, it was actually leaking a bit.
Found the part online for $12 or something cheap like that, and a genuine Honda part to boot. Took me about an hour or so to get it changed out. Sealed the leak right up.
>>14040946
>cat in my driveway
>go up to pet it
>it runs away from me and sits in the middle of the street like a dip shit
>car stops in front of it
>i have to shoo the fucking thing out of the way
cats are stupid as shit
>>14040946
First ever crash I was involved in was my friend trying to avoid running over a cat and we ended up in a ditch.
That being said, if it's safely avoidable, I'll avoid it.
But if not I won't lose any sleep over it.
I'll feel bad, yeah.
>>14041101
Does this actually happen? My speedometer died on my 96 Ranger, and it triggered my CEL. Seeing as its a piece of crap, and the spedometer is not really crucial, I haven't bothered.
It's been on for a few months now, I just scan it from time to time, make sure no other codes come up.
>>14041118
I ran over a massive fucking cat once. It must've bounced around a few times because I heard a few loud thunks. When I got out to check, it had actually knocked my muffler off the hanger.
>>14041032
Another time a scissor jack saved me some headache
>trying to loosen a bolt on the undercarriage of a vehicle, but very little room to get proper force on the breaker bar
>place breaker bar on bolt so that pushing it up will loosen it
>put scissor jack under the end of the breaker bar and start jacking it up
>suck a dick bolt, I win
I don't even know where that scissor jack came from, but it's saved my ass a few times
>Older car had a sunroof
>Operated manually by a crank
>One sunny day the mechanics broke down, crank didnt work any more
>Hacked the mechanics, so I can push the sunroof back and forth
>But how to lock it in closed position?
>Look around in the car
>Find tea spoon
>Nice
>Bend the tea spoon into a hook
>Apply hooked tea spoon to closed sun roof
Locked
(pic unrelated)
My BMW has extremely narrow spark plug wells. Conveniently BMW USA sells the socket for $65. So instead I just got a regular one out of the toolbox and grinded that bitch down. Looked like shit but it was faster and free.
>>14041426
Making tools is always clever. Especially when the tool gets used a lot and you refer to it as "the thing".
>>14041130
Ayyy mah niggah. The fuel filter neck on my ranger has a tiny crack in it so it trips an emissions code. Ignore the light and scan once a month for new codes.
I wish
>>14041426
snap-on conveniently wants $65 for sockets too.
But I went to sears and got the craftsman set for $1200 cheaper
who else /clever/ here?
>hate amber indicators
>want to get euro style clears
>headlight assembly has lenses attached with epoxy on the inside
>have to buy whole new assembly, lenses aren't even sold individually because it's considered impossible/impractical to get them off
>i have xenons so a new assembly is expensive as shit
>buy cheap chink clear halogen set
>sawzall through the housing and remove epoxy and bits of housing from lens
>sawzall through the lenses on my xenons
>remove epoxy and remaining lens bits from housing
>install new lens, clear gasket maker around lens
Fuck the police.
my car made an annoying squeaking sound when I turned to the right
I just got a straight pipe from front to back so now I dont hear it
the problem is basically gone
>trying to push brake caliper piston back in
>no clamp
>put bottlejack inside piston and wedge caliper under frame of car
>start jacking it up, when car starts lifting you know its in all the way
>brake booster blows
>vacuum leak makes car idle like shit
>plug off vacuum line and drive with manual brakes for the next 3 months
>nearly eject yourself through windshield when finally fixed
>need to get front wheel off motorcycle
>no center stand, no shop stand, can't leave milk crate underneath because fairings and exhaust
>use jack to hold front wheel up
>remove wheel
>reinstall axle
>put a jack stand under the axle
>leave in gear
Stood like that for a weekend no problem.
>>14040936
>Car is broken
>google issue
>buy part at auto part store
>install myself
>didn't go to a shop
I've done this hundreds of times and it's saved me tens of thousand. #wow
>>14042370
>comparing Craftsman to Snapon
Someone's never worked in a shop.
On 3.7 jeeps and chargers you can change the timing belt without removing the harmonic damper if you remove all the bolts to the lower cover and rotate it 180* you can now snake the belt around the cover and onto the crank gear
>>14043252
I do and use craftsman box wrenches and sockets, only truck tools are ratchet handles, torque wrenches and specialty tools. Never had to warranty a thing yet.
Also bought my box at Lowe's and my cart from napa. Nobody at the shop gives a shit in fact nobody gives a shit about your tool brand. I could use a leatherman and it wouldn't matter as long as my billable hours are correct.
>get a used car from stealership
>works fine and runs great
>suddenly a power steering leak not even two weeks later
>fucking christ
>stealership refuses to fix it for free despite 30 day warranty since they have some retarded fine text in it
>fucking nigger ass faggots
>top off with some LUCAS power steering fluid
>top it off with some more the next day while waiting for the weekend so I can fix it
>do it one more time
>leak stops
>fast forward almost four years
>still no leak
>>14040936
>header gasket blew
>was some shitty synthetic gasket called thermoseal
>fuck me for not buying better gaskets
>unbolt headers, try to scrape gasket off
>piece of hardened gasket rips and sticks on to the header surface
>nothing would get it off, picks just take tiny bits out of it
>only a few millimeters of space to fit in between head and header
>fuck me, i'm gonna have to take this header out
>big headache because 4th gen f body
>think of solution: super glue sandpaper to a spackling spatula and sandpaper the gasket material off
>works perfectly
Not really a budget saver, but it avoided a massive headache
>car stalling when braking
>first winter with a carburetor
>richen the mixture
>idles better, but still drops and sometimes stalls
>just start heel-toeing to keep car running
>worried about carb being fucked
>winter gets colder
>adjusting mixture again
>bump a wire on carb with screwdriver
>idle drops
>disconnect wire, it's loose
>engine dies
>it all clicks
That loose blade connection was causing the anti diesel solenoid to close when the wire tugged forwards when braking. I crimped the connector (pic related type), it fit snug and I haven't had the issue since. Saved me a carb rebuild or something to chase down the issue.
>>14043399
>Window stuck down
>Live in florida, constant rain.
>Have to enter from passenger seat. eventually took panel off and pushed window up.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tiIewl4RqYQ
>>14043711
It looks so easy with the right tools
>GMs bullshit VATS/Passkey antitheft shit doesn't recognize the resistor in my key for my 02 Catfish
>Car acts like I'm stealing it, no spark no fuel
>Have to replace entire ignition cylinder/harness or pay a dealership a grand to do it
>nah
>Buy $3 variety pack or resistors
>Hold multimeter to each side of key to measure resistance
>Twist 3 resistors together by the wire
>Stick wire ends in VATS/ignition >Total nig-rig, no tape or solder - literally just stuck in to plastic harness
>Cranks on first turn
Took a total of 5 minutes once I decided to try it
>Leave it alone
>Car gods magically fix it after a while.
Feels good man
>>14040936
I shutted up and bought a civic
Only thing that I ever need to do is replace the cat converter and an O2 sensor, drove the piss out of her for 5 years
Not me, but my dad
He bought a car used and didn't change the oil or the air filter until about 20,000 miles in
Still runs fine
>>14046294
Good job, but OP was asking if you did anything clever on a repair, like if you did something cheeky to get the o2 sensor off, not LOL XD I SAVED MUNNY
>>14040936
> Leased a reliable vehicle
> Bought a reliable vehicle with a warranty
I got a couple
>in college, poor as fuck.
>Changing timing belt on Mazda mx3.
>Need pulley holder for special snowflake engine to remove crank bolt.
>It costs $60
>Bolt tight as fuck
>Connect the breaker bar and socket to the crank bolt and wedge the breaker bar against the ground.
>Disconnect coil lead to cap and rotor.
>Briefly crank starter.
>Loosens bolt like a charm.
I've heard some horror stories of people grinding a few teeth of their flywheels using this method but it's worth it imo.
>Have OG Saab 900
>Has this weird ass problem where the engine won't rev above 1700 rpm
>no codes
>Check fuel pressure, MAF sensor, O2 sensor, IAC valves, replace fuel filter.
>Problem persists.
>Finally remove ECU and take it apart on a hunch despite it being "tamper proof".
>Bulged capacitor and burnt mark on circuit board.
>ECUs are expensive as fuck ($400) and supplier says car will not run properly unless it programmed properly using VIN for reference.
>I smell bullshit.
>Find a used one on ebay for $55 from same year and engine type.
>It works like a fucking charm.
>Car runs fine.
Tasted like victory.
